Southern States - Karnataka   

Farmers' stir disrupts highway traffic

By Our Special Correspondent

GULBARGA Dec. 20. Traffic on the busy Gulbarga-Bangalore State highway was disrupted for more than three hours today because of a "rasta roko" by farmers led by the Scheduled Castes' Morcha of the BJP at Farhatabad Cross, 18 km. from here. They were demanding waiver of loans taken by farmers in view of the failure of major crops in Gulbarga district.

Police stopped traffic near the Central Prison and near Farhatabad Cross to prevent untoward incidents due to the agitation. After three hours, the Tahsildar and other officials of the Revenue Department arrived at the spot to receive a memorandum from the farmers. Officials from the Revenue Department assured the farmers that crop damage would be assessed and payment of crop insurance amount facilitated.

In a memorandum submitted to the Tahsildar, the farmers, led by the State unit Secretary of the Scheduled Castes' Morcha of the BJP, Sunil Y. Vallyapur, said the failure of rains and lack of moisture had affected the major crops of the district such as red gram, sunflower, bengal gram, and jowar. The crops had withered, and farmers had suffered extensive losses.

Criticising the Government for the "delay" in providing relief to farmers, the memorandum wanted the Government to ensure at least 10 hours of uninterrupted power supply during the daytime to irrigation pumpsets so as to save the remaining crop by using the groundwater available. The memorandum demanded that the Government write off dues of power bills of farmers till 2003, and sought steps for early payment of the crop insurance amount.

Meanwhile, members of the Karnataka Pranta Raitha Sangha today held a dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office demanding compensation for farmers who had lost their crops.

They said both kharif and rabi crops had failed in the district, and the Government should ensure payment of crop insurance amount immediately.

A memorandum submitted by the sangha to the Deputy Commissioner demanded that the administration provide drinking water to villages and fodder for cattle. It should establish "goshalas" in the district.

The memorandum also demanded that loans taken by farmers be written off and recovery proceedings launched by banks in villages be stopped. It

demanded that the State Government fix at least Rs. 2,000 per quintal as the minimum support price for red gram, and release Rs. 100 crore to the Red Gram Development Board to facilitate effective market intervention to stop the fall in the prices of the commodity in the wholesale market. The district administration should immediately start programmes to generate employment, the memorandum said.

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